Ethical Issues Related To BRCA Gene Testing in Orthodox Jewish Women

Persons exhibiting mutations in two tumor suppressor genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, have a greatly increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer. The incidence of BRCA gene mutation is very high in Ashkenazi Jewish women of European descent, and many issues can arise, particularly for observant...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: Mor, Pnina (Author) ; Oberle, Kathleen (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sage 2008
In: Nursing ethics
Year: 2008, Volume: 15, Issue: 4, Pages: 512-522
Further subjects:B ethics and genetics
B BRCA gene
B Orthodox Jewish women
B genetics testing
B healthy carriers
B Jewish ethics
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:Persons exhibiting mutations in two tumor suppressor genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2, have a greatly increased risk of developing breast and/or ovarian cancer. The incidence of BRCA gene mutation is very high in Ashkenazi Jewish women of European descent, and many issues can arise, particularly for observant Orthodox women, because of their genetic status. Their obligations under the Jewish code of ethics, referred to as Jewish law, with respect to the acceptability of various risk-reducing strategies, may be poorly understood. In this article the moral direction that Jewish law gives to women regarding testing, confidentiality, and other issues is explored. The intent is to broaden nurses' knowledge of how a particular religious tradition could impact on decision making around genetics testing, with the aim of enhancing their understanding of culturally sensitive ethical care.
ISSN:1477-0989
Contains:Enthalten in: Nursing ethics
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1177/09697330080150041201